Tuesday, 9 August 2011

My love for rat people {Characters}

I've never liked being a human. I mean in gaming terms, I don't get anything out of playing a human character when there are often so many other species to choose from. Part of escapism is to be someone that you could never be in real life and I find race/kindred plays a big role in that 'escapist' persona.

I'm a fan of Dwarves, which is weird because in most game settings they're just hardier, squatter versions of humans. In Tunnels and Trolls I play Dwarves often out of necessity as a Dwarf Warrior is the most bad-ass common character you can create. They can take a hell of a knocking and can deal out a nice amount of pain (I opt for the 'traditional' Dwarf weapons like hammers and axes) making them ideal for solo runs. In fact, my highest level solo character, Mogwrath, was a Dwarf, and a fine one at that.

Out of tabletop and into CRPGs I like playing evil or evil-looking characters - the undead being high on my list. But if there's the option I will always pick the Rat person.

Rat people, Ratlings, Skaven or whatever you want to call them, are intrinsically cool to me. They're dark, sinister creatures who suit assassin characters well. In many games they lick their blades in a coat of venom so even if their victim doesn't die from the fight, they will probably die of infection. I like the thought of a big rat army on the tabletop in a fantasy wargame due to their mass numbers and weird contraptions. Skaven warpstone is a particularly cool idea that could be implemented into other games.

I wish more games allowed you to play as Rat people but often they are portrayed as evil beings who seek to corrupt and murder. While I do like being a maniacal bastard every now and again, maybe it's time that we look at this race in a different light. Can't Rat guys be good? Can they not enjoy an ale in the pub with the other adventurers? I think it's time for the rat to rise and become a member of the party.

Tunnels and Trolls does have Ratling as a rare kindred. Unfortunately, they are incredibly weak, having no advantages in any area, only disadvantages in strength, luck and charisma. Here's a Ratling I rolled up:

I think the Ratling needs some tweaking. For instance, I would think that they are quite dexterous and not as weak as they're made out to be. I'll make DEX x2 and ST x1. I'm fine with them not having great luck and they're certainly not the most charismatic creatures, so those negatives can stay. Now let's take a look at the new Ratling:

English Eerie available to download

Pay what you want for solo horror storytelling game

Buy Tequendria in paperback

The first RPG inspired by Lord Dunsany

About Trollish Delver

Welcome to Trollish Delver, a blog mostly about roleplaying games. Trollish Delver Games is a publisher of fine tabletop products, including Romance of the Perilous Land, Tequendria, Quill, USR and In Darkest Warrens.